By Laura McCamy

Photography: Carrie Cizauskas

Berkeley has accomplished what few North American cities have: establishing streets safe enough for riders of all ages and skill levels. A network of seven bicycle boulevards allows cyclists to ride across town on traffic-calmed, bicycle-prioritized streets. Purple way-finding signs point to major destinations and include mileage information.

“The most interesting story is how many parents ride with their kids,” according to Dave Campbell, president of the advocacy group Bicycle Friendly Berkeley Coalition (BFBC). “It’s heartwarming to see how many parents ride with their kids to school and then ride to work themselves.”

Berkeley’s journey to becoming a great cycling city began over 30 years ago. In 1975, concern about excessive traffic in residential neighborhoods led to the installation of diverters, as part of a citywide traffic calming effort. The diverters generated several years of controversy, two ballot initiatives for their removal (both defeated) and a lawsuit. Ultimately, California law was changed to make the traffic barriers state-recognized street features.

Rochelle Wheeler, Dave Campbell and Eric Anderson in the bike cage.Photograph by Carrie Cizauskas

In the early 1990s, the first Bike Plan was drafted and Rochelle Wheeler, the city’s first bike planner, recalled that their traffic calming efforts “were a really strong foundation that the city has been able to elaborate and tweak.”

The BFBC went door-to-door, talking to residents about the proposed bicycle boulevards and making sure they knew about upcoming hearings. “It was very heartening to see the amount of support from the residents,” Wheeler said. “They got it that this was an advantage to them to have traffic-calmed streets.” Also crucial to winning the support of residents is the fact that bicycle boulevards were car-lite, not car-free, and that no parking spots were removed.

One of the tough choices to be made in putting the plan on the streets was whether improving safety meant starting with road stencils and signage or with changes to traffic patterns at major intersections. The decision to start with what Wheeler calls the “low hanging fruit” – stencils and signage – did not sit well with some of the long-time cyclists.

Dave Campbell was particularly skeptical. “I thought they should make the streets safe first. In retrospect, I think it was a good move. The signage created buy-in and made it easier to do the hard things.”

Traffic barrier designed to decrease motor vehicle traffic while allowing bike traffic to pass.Photograph by Carrie Cizauskas

The Bike Plan was adopted in 2000 and by 2003, the entire bicycle boulevard network was put in place for $330,000 – a tiny fraction of the cost of most roadway improvements. Eric Anderson, Berkeley’s current bicycle and pedestrian planner, reported that while the number of cyclists is estimated to have increased by 18 percent overall between 2000 and 2009, at the intersection of Milvia and Channing, two bicycle boulevards that meet near downtown Berkeley. The increase is estimated at nearly 36 percent.

Perhaps a more important measure of success is the pleasure of cycling on a bicycle boulevard designed to invite all ages and types of cyclists. Anderson calls this, “the acknowledgment that the experience we have when we’re out in public space is as important as getting where you need to go.” This acknowledgement has helped build a growing bicycle culture in the East Bay.

“I love that I can get across town without riding on major streets,” said Wheeler. “I love looking at the houses and gardens, and if I don’t have to worry about traffic, I’m free to do that.”